When people experience trauma, their brains and bodies are put into a state of disconnection from self and others. This is the body and mind’s way of preserving our integrity in the face of overwhelming and terrifying experiences and emotions that would otherwise be too much to bear.

The long-term effects of these disconnection experiences, which are also known as a lack of attachment and the experience of childhood trauma, can have a huge impact on our mental health. This is why more and more clinicians are beginning to use a new diagnosis called developmental trauma disorders, which describes the unique impacts of childhood trauma on an individual’s life, even if they don’t meet the criteria for PTSD or cPTSD.

Healing from Developmental Trauma: Strategies for Recovery

DTD is different to PTSD in that it covers more than just the symptoms of experiencing extreme stress, such as habitual self-harm or extreme distrust towards others; it explains the impacts of disconnection and trauma on our ability to form relationships. It is a more comprehensive and holistic diagnosis that accounts for the impact of prolonged exposure to multiple forms of adversity, including emotional abuse, neglect, and witnessing family or community violence.

Many of the clients we work with have a history of complex trauma, which may be described as intergenerational or cultural trauma. We aim to help them develop a sense of safety, predictability, and connection within their relationship with us. This is a key element of our therapeutic approach, which involves the therapist functioning as a co-regulator with our clients and building their capacity to do this themselves through an attunement-misattunement model.

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Unlike most competency frameworks, which are linked to occupations and job roles in some way, the focus, structure, and use of attachment regulation and competency framework vary greatly depending on the types of organizations and stakeholders developing and using them. The most significant differences relate to the underlying values, goals, and objectives of the organizations and their stakeholder groups, as well as the specific contexts in which they are being used.

The ARC (Attachment, Self-Regulation, and Competency) model provides a flexible framework for intervention with children and youth who have experienced complex trauma and their caregiving systems. The model integrates normative childhood development, child and adolescent development, the impact of traumatic stress and attachment disruption, and factors promoting resilience. Specifically, the model addresses three core domains that are frequently impacted among youth who have been exposed to chronic and prolonged traumatic stress: attachment, regulation, and developmental competency (Arvidson et al., 2011; Blaustein & Kinniburgh, 2010).

Attachment Competency and Resilience: Navigating Life’s Challenges

An essential component of the ARC model is an understanding that young children’s sense of safety and understanding of their world revolves around their relationships with their caregivers. To ensure that these relationships are safe, therapists must first assess and address the child’s attachment pattern to build trust. Afterward, therapists must teach the child self-regulation and the skills they need to function in their environment. In addition, therapists must promote the child’s development by building their competencies in order to prepare them for the future. Ultimately, addressing a trauma-impacted child’s attachment, regulation and competency leads to better mental health outcomes and greater resilience in the face of adversity.

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